There's an awful lot of religious talk and precious little action in "Unvanquished," the new episode that kicks off Season 1.5 of Caprica on Thursday night.
Speechifying about the pros and cons of polytheism, the characters in the Battlestar Galactica prequel lumber through disappointingly dull scenes as the show returns to Syfy after a six-month hiatus. While the series' deepening exploration of religious extremism draws on the same sort of "ripped from the headlines" topicality that made its sci-fi predecessor so powerful, there's one key difference: Battlestar hummed along on the strength of its marvelously nuanced rogues' gallery of characters, whereas Caprica drones on, mired in the solemnity of its themes.
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For those who've lost track of the proceedings, Eric Stoltz's software millionaire Daniel Graystone is despondent – really despondent – after losing his robot-building empire. He remains surly while negotiating with a Mafia-like crime ring over the development of his virtual-heaven technology.
But most of the plot revolves around those who believe in a single god. The extremist wing of the monotheists, led by Sister Clarice (played by Polly Walker), will do whatever it takes to gain dominion over the pagans currently in control.
All that religious infighting turns "Unvanquished" into a turgid affair that's light on interesting plot twists and heavy on verbiage about belief systems. Apart from a brief appearance by Alessandra Torresani, the show's most energetic actor, and an effectively creepy action sequence lifted from Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, Caprica's return to prime time radiates an unrelenting air of melancholia.
Caprica airs at 10 p.m./9 p.m. Central on Syfy.
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